Oregon · USACE Portland District

Hills Creek Lake water level

Today's reading against full pool and Hills Creek Lake's own seasonal history.

1460 1480 1500 1520 1540
Elevation, feet (NGVD29)

as of August 19, 2026

1463.68 ft NGVD29

level Reading is unusually low for mid-August.

Reading comes straight from U.S. Geological Survey National Water Information System (USGS gauge 14145100) and updates live when you load this page.


Hills Creek Lake through the year

The band is the lake's own normal: where the level has run on each calendar day, 1980–2026. The summer drawdown — and how this year sits in it — shows up without reading a single number.

1450 1500 JFMAMJJASOND
Median and normal range by day of year, 1980–2026 · elevation, feet (NGVD29)

This year vs the years that matter

This year's trace against last year and the driest and wettest years on record — the drought-context question every lake regular asks.

1450 1500 1550 JFMAMJJASOND
  • 2026 (this year)
  • 2025 (last year)
  • 1996 (wettest on record)
  • 2023 (driest on record)

Full pool, datum, and the gauge

"Full pool" here means the conservation pool — the level the lake is designed to hold for water supply and recreation, not the flood-control space above it. The full explainer covers flood pool and dead pool too.

Full pool not published by the operator
Gauge USGS gauge 14145100 · U.S. Geological Survey National Water Information System
Datum NGVD29
Last verified August 20, 2026

LakeDates reports lake level, not ramp status. Whether a given ramp or marina is usable at this level varies ramp by ramp — call the marina before you tow.

Quick answers

How full is Hills Creek Lake right now?

Hills Creek Lake is at 1463.68 ft (NGVD29) as of August 19, 2026 — Reading is unusually low for mid-August.

Is Hills Creek Lake full?

USACE Portland District doesn't publish a conservation-pool figure for Hills Creek Lake, so this page shows the reading against the lake's own seasonal history instead.

What is full pool for Hills Creek Lake?

USACE Portland District doesn't publish a single conservation-pool elevation for Hills Creek Lake. The seasonal chart shows the range the lake actually runs instead.